Call of Duty "Digital Platform" in Development
Activision wants to even further expand the Call of Duty franchise beyond its current annual-release status.
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Call of Duty "Digital Platform" in Development
Expanding Variety of Game Platforms a Challenge for Publishers
There are more ways to play games than ever before — in addition to the dedicated gaming consoles and handhelds, mobile phones, the iPad and other tablets, and social networking sites are just some of the areas gaming is becoming an increasingly large factor in. That plethora of platforms is a real challenge for publishers like Activision, which are now faced with a lot more ground to cover
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Expanding Variety of Game Platforms a Challenge for Publishers
Japan Sales 2010: Monsters, Mario Clean Up
Console software remained brisk all year in Japan, but a major slowdown in hardware purchases resulted in a drop of 9% in total sales for the Japanese game industry, according to figures released by media outfit Enterbrain in the latest issue of Famitsu magazine. The total size of the console biz in Japan last year was estimated at 493.6 billion yen (about $6.03 billion), with software sales down by about 2.5% over 2009 and hardware down by nearly 19% to 175.6 billion yen.
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Japan Sales 2010: Monsters, Mario Clean Up
Japan Review Check: The Last Story, Valkyria 3
The New Year holidays are over, and Japan’s game industry is back to feverishly releasing new titles. It’s a bumper crop for Asian console gamers this week, and here are the main highlights, as seen in the review section of this week’s Famitsu magazine: – The Last Story (10/10/9/9, 38 points): High marks abound for Hironobu Sakaguchi’s latest full-scale RPG, with much of the praise focusing on the game’s fights. “The battle system seems complex at first, but it’s actually simple enough to control that even casual users won’t have a problem,” Famitsu said.
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Japan Review Check: The Last Story, Valkyria 3
What Japanese Devs Really Think
Anyone who’s read a book about Japanese culture probably learned the concepts of tatemae — the behavior and opinions a person shares with the general public — and honne — what that person really thinks, revealed to no one but trusted friends.
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What Japanese Devs Really Think
CoD Rumors Point to Modern Warfare Prequel, New Developer
Two Call of Duty rumors have spread across the web today, and they suggest the mega-successful franchise is going in two new directions: A prequel to Modern Warfare from Infinity Ward, and a new entry from Singularity developer Raven Software. Raven Software’s involvement comes from a new job listing the studio posted (via MCV ), which explains they’re looking for an FX artist “to drive the development of stunning visual effects for an established console-based, realistic, first-person military shooter.” Considering Raven Software is owned by Activision, it’s not hard to guess which established military FPS franchise they could be referring to.
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CoD Rumors Point to Modern Warfare Prequel, New Developer
Japan’s Game Industry Hoping For Better 2011
According to data released today by Famitsu publisher Enterbrain, the Japanese handheld and home-console game market grossed 493 billion yen (about $5.9 billion) in sales last year, a nine-percent dropoff over 2009 and the third year in a row that the size of Japan’s game business has shrunk. Two Japanese game producers, Masahiro Sakurai ( Kirby , Kid Icarus ) and Toshihiro Nagoshi (the Yakuza series), sat down to talk over this matter a bit in the most recent issue of Famitsu magazine. “Looking at the industry as a whole,” Sakurai said, “I feel like it’s getting harder than ever to find something really new out there.
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Japan’s Game Industry Hoping For Better 2011
Wii Tops 34 Million Units Sold in U.S., DS Tops 47 Million
Nintendo has announced that as of the end of 2010, the Wii has sold over 34 million units in the U.S., and the DS “family” (that is, everything including the original DS model up to the DSi) has sold over 47 million units — making it the nation’s biggest-selling gaming device ever. The next best-selling console would be the PlayStation 2, although the most recent numbers we have for comparison come from 2008, when Sony declared the PS2 topped 50 million units sold in all of North America. There’s no breakdown of how many units were sold in the U.S.
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Wii Tops 34 Million Units Sold in U.S., DS Tops 47 Million
Total U.S. Game Spending to Top $24 Billion for 2010
Total U.S. consumer videogame spending is expected to reach nearly $25 billion for 2010, according to a report by market research company Newzoo ( via Gamasutra).
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Total U.S. Game Spending to Top $24 Billion for 2010
Sega: MadWorld "Possibly" Would Have Sold Better on 360, PS3
Platinum Games’ MadWorld was a critical hit when it released on the Wii in 2008, but it wasn’t a commercial hit — and publisher Sega admits that releasing it on the Wii might have had something to do with it. Speaking to Game Informer (via CVG ), vice president of sales and marketing Alan Pritchard admitted that releasing the hyper-violent game on the Wii was a risk that never really paid off
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Sega: MadWorld "Possibly" Would Have Sold Better on 360, PS3
